DDR4 prices soar on high demand ahead of discontinuation

DDR4 prices soar on high demand ahead of discontinuation

최초입력 2025.06.23 10:41:16

Samsung Electronics’ 8Gb DDR4 DRAM.

Prices for general-purpose DRAM double data rate 4 (DDR4) are on a rise as major memory producers move to phase out DDR4 production.
According to industry sources on Sunday, memory manufacturers such as Samsung Electronics Co., SK hynix Inc., and Micron Technology Inc. have officially announced plans to end DDR4 production. They are currently engaged in “last-time buy” negotiations with clients.
DDR4 is the fourth-generation DRAM standard, which has been in mass production since 2014. It has been widely used in various systems, including computers, servers, and industrial equipment.
Sources noted that the looming phaseout is triggering a rush among customers still running older central processing unit (CPU)-based systems.
According to market research firm TrendForce, DDR4 is experiencing the steepest price increase among DRAM products in the spot market.
Module-type products in particular are seeing even greater price hikes compared to individual chips.
The real-time spot transaction price of a DDR4 1G×8 chip reached $4.18 in the third week of June, a 22.2 percent increase from $3.42 the previous week.
The spike in spot prices is also beginning to affect contract pricing - which is set quarterly between memory makers and their clients.
Spot prices, determined by real-time market transactions, often lead contract prices.
TrendForce reported that contract prices for server DDR4 rose by 18 to 23 percent in the second quarter compared to the previous quarter, while PC DDR4 prices climbed by 13 to 18 percent.
For the third quarter, server DDR4 is expected to increase by an additional 8 to 13 percent, and PC DDR4 by 18 to 23 percent.
In some overseas markets, DDR4 is reportedly trading at higher prices than its successor, DDR5 - a reversal largely due to the sharp drop in DDR4 supply after the big 3 memory manufacturers announced the end of DDR4 production.
Samsung Electronics stated during its fourth-quarter 2024 earnings call that it would reduce the revenue share of DDR4 and low-power DDR4 (LPDDR4) from the low 30 percent range in 2024 to single digits in 2025.
SK hynix also forecast a reduction in DDR4 and LPDDR4 sales from around 20 percent last year to single digits this year.
Both companies are expected to end DDR4 production by year-end.
U.S.-based Micron has also reportedly informed clients that it will cease DDR4 supply within the next two to three quarters, and even China’s ChangXin Memory Technologies Inc. (CXMT) has begun scaling back its DDR4 production.
Adding to the supply squeeze, some customers are building up inventory preemptively to avoid potential U.S. tariff risks, further fueling the price surge.
Meanwhile, the NAND flash market is moving in the opposite direction.
Uncertainty has grown across the market amid speculation that the Chinese government will strengthen crackdowns on memory chip smuggling, dampening overall market sentiment and reducing transaction activity, sources said.
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